GM's Holden Torana Name Lives Again!
Sidney Auto Show:October 7, 2004; Holden today revived a famous Australian
nameplate when it took the covers off a sensational showcar
called Torana TT36.
Holden drew on General Motors’
global resources to build the hot pink Torana TT36, which is
powered by an experimental 280kW twin turbo 3.6 litre Alloytec
V6 engine, sports a glass roof and showcases bold directional
design themes.
Not for production, this mid-sized hatch
concept demonstrates the strength and versatility of Holden’s
design talent to a worldwide audience and emphasises its
ability to react swiftly to changing customer demand.
Torana TT36 highlights Holden’s rear wheel drive
powertrain engineering expertise and the practical benefits to
be gained by sharing GM global suspension and chassis
components and modular structural systems.
The new
millennium hot hatch pays homage to Holden’s Bathurst-winning
icon car of the seventies, the Torana A9X. It is 25 years since
the revered V8-powered Torana A9X last conquered Mount Panorama
and wrote itself into Australian automotive legend.
“Naming the concept car was easy. We knew many fans
would immediately call it Torana because it is a high powered,
mid-size, rear wheel drive hot hatch. The TT36 stands for Twin
Turbo 3.6.”
The twenty-first century Torana has
slingshot performance potential. Its experimental 3.6 litre
twin turbo Alloytec V6, hand-built at Holden’s new Port
Melbourne engine plant, produces 280kW of power, transferred to
the tarmac via a heavy-duty six speed manual transmission.
Ninety per cent of the 480Nm of torque developed is
available from just 1600 rpm and the TT36 shares the
power-to-weight advantage that helped its A9X sporting
predecessor to drive into the record books at Mt Panorama a
quarter of a century ago.
The four-seater showcar is
finished in luminous, look-at-me pink - dubbed ‘ManGenta’ by
the trend-spotting stylists who created it - contrasted against
a slick new-tech interior in minimalist black and white. A
panoramic glass roof extends from the steeply raked windscreen
all the way back to the hatch and the TT36 sits on 20-inch,
ten-spoke alloys.
The project was originally named
XP54, reflecting the acronym ‘eXperimental Project’ and coded
54 in recognition of Holden’s so-called Studio 54 design
workshop in the outer suburbs of Melbourne .
"The hatch
style gives us a very fast line running over the top, and we’ve
given it strong directional lines. In terms of overall design
intent, it’s far more sophisticated sports machine than street
machine.
“And because it’s a vehicle which delivers a
really large interior compartment in relation to its exterior
size, it shows off our packaging skills, which are a
traditional Holden strength.”
The Torana TT36 interior
is an exercise in black and white contemporary cool, described
by Holden’s young colour and trim team as ‘nu luxury’. Taking
inspiration from forecast fashion trends in domestic and
industrial design, they gave it smoothly sculptured white
leather seats and mirror-gloss finishes in piano black and
pearlescent perspex, contrasted with soft-feel textures and
black techno-mesh rubber floor covering.
The pink
exterior theme is picked up in clever LED lighting effects and
a ‘retro future’ 3D instrument layout that can be customised to
the driver’s taste. Open the door and a full- length lighting
strip integrated into the glass roof radiates a healthy pink
glow. Press the backlit central starter button to play twin
turbo engine idle music. Touch the interactive infotainment
screen to control myriad functions – phone, CD, SatNav, DVD,
address book and other Blue Tooth-compatible features.
“The Torana TT36 may be simply for show – but it’s not
about outrageous technology. We consider that something very
close to this concept could be practically achievable in the
not-too-distant future,” Mr Stolfo said.
“It’s a first
step towards monitoring public reaction to a type of rear-wheel
drive vehicle that doesn’t exist in today’s General Motors
portfolio. It could be designed and produced off a number of GM
platforms, taking advantage of the virtual maths-based
processes and component sharing which enabled us to build this
working concept in a very short space of time.“
Holden
Torana TT36
Design and Feature Highlights
Exterior:
- Layered, luminous ‘ManGenta’ paint finish
-
Technical aero-theme projector headlamps with bead-blasted
clear acrylic indicators and ambient LED pink lighting:
matching wrap-around ‘circle and beam’ tail lamps
-
Panoramic glass roof, frameless glass hatch opening
-
Ten spoke, 20-inch, hand-cast aluminium alloy wheels in Titan
Silver, wheel nut caps and lion brand in gunmetal chrome.
- Matt black Venturi-style rear underplate, housing
twin rectangular chromed exhaust tips
- Mirror-mounted
repeater LED indicators
- Twin aircraft-style fuel
fillers
- Textured mesh grille inserts
- Fog
lamps
Interior:
- Tailored white leather seats
(8-way electric)
- White leather door trims
-
Padded white leather console upper and binnacle hood
-
Four-spoke, deep dished leather-rim steering wheel with menu
navigation roller controls
- Pearlescent back-painted
centre console with integrated grab handles, flowing front to
back
- High-gloss white uppers, contrasting with
soft-feel matt finish lower trim
- Glossy piano black
lower door, front seatback and console accents
-
Textured woven ‘Rubco’ floor covering, rear seatbacks, cargo
floor with cross-patterned overlay
- Secure underfloor
storage/wet area
- Full-length roof-mounted LED strip
lighting with semi-translucent pink lens, LED task lighting
- Pink LED-lit foot wells, armrests, rear sub-woofers
- DVD screens with piano black surrounds, integrated
into front seatback head restraints
- Gunmetal chrome
Holden ID
- Pink backlit starter button on centre
console
- Full-colour TFT touch screen menu-driven
display can be set to individual preferences.
-
‘Floating’ IP dials with clear pink indicators on 3D black
background
Holden Torana TT36 Specifications
Powertrain
Engine
3.6 L twin turbo Global V6
Turbo
Air to air intercooler
Two x KO4 Warner
turbochargers
Technologies
Continuously variable
valve timing,
variable intake manifold, variable valve
actuation
Engine displacement
3.6 L (60 degree
engine)
Power
280 kW
Torque
480 Nm
Compression ratio
9.0:1
Bore x Stroke
(mm)
89.0 X 85.6
Transmission
6-speed heavy
duty manual transmission
Gear ratios (:1)
1
st
2.66
2 nd
1.78
3 rd
1.30
4 th
1.00
5 th
.74
6 th
.50
Final drive ratio
3:73
Structure
Body/chassis structure
Lower
dominant tube structure
Chassis integrated with upper body
structure
Full length outer main rails
Multi tube
centre tunnel structure
Chassis material
Steel
Suspension
Front and Rear
Independent
SLA suspension
Forged aluminium upper and lower control
arms and knuckles
Adjustable aluminium monotube shocks with
coil springs
Wheels
20 x 8 inch ten-spoke
aluminium
Tyre size (front and rear)
245/35 R20
Tyre brand
Bridgestone Potenza REO5OA
Steering
Forward mounted power rack and pinion
Brakes
4 wheel disc with Anti-Lock Braking System,
Traction Control, Electronic Brake Assist, Electronic Brake
Distribution, Corner Brake Control and Electronic Stability
Program
Front size (mm)
365 x 35 ventilated discs
alloy billet machined 6-piston calipers
Rear size
(mm)
365 x 35 ventilated discs
alloy billet machined
4-piston calipers
2004-10-07
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